Wyld, Marion Alice (1858-1932)

Title

Marion Alice Wyld

Author

Wyld, Marion Alice (1858-1932)

Date

1858-1932

Place of origin

Queensferry

Edinburgh

Language

English

Italian

Profession

Lecturer

Head Librarian

Biographical details

Early Life

Marion Alice, always called Alice, was born at Queensferry 3rd May 1858, and was named after my mother and my grandmother. As a child, she was healthy, active, and diligent ; and now that her character has developed, I must call her my energetic
and learned daughter.

She not only has a natural tendency to read, and think, and search after knowledge, but at all spare hours, or hours of rest, if such an expression is not, in her case, a contradiction in terms, she is either reading aloud for the general benefit, or working busily at simple needlework, or at more or less laborious fancy work for some favoured friend.

She has excellent abilities, and she has steadily used them. I do not think it would be the befitting expression to say she has cultivated them, for she seems to do very little with a direct reference to self in any form. Alice is, I think, nearly the only young woman I have known who, so soon as she had passed girl's estate, adopted what may be called stoical or self-denying principles. (pp. 126)

She is tall and slender, but straight, active, and commanding. When animated or lighted up by any interesting subject, she is bright, her face becomes inspired by the sentiment experienced, and she seems to me on such occasions essentially beautiful. Though bold and outspoken, and even at times defiant, when dealing with questions of opinion, she is at other times, I would say, over shy, silent, and reticent. She has a reverent, religious nature, but as a searcher after truth she is broad and tolerant, and many may think too much.

She has a large and constantly increasing circle of friends and correspondents, and though she has no great pleasure or skill in ordinary gossip, especially with elder and unsympathetic people, yet when she is engaged in conversation with her friends, whether young or old, she has no lack either of subject or language, or of laughter and enjoyment. She naturally attaches herself to those who are interesting and intelligent, but much more readily and steadily to the sick and distressed, and many such have been her fast friends and corre- spondents as long as they lived—for many of these have passed away from this scene.

Alice has been the tried and faithful friend and help of her parents now for many years—their factotum when at home, and their vade mecum when travelling. I sometimes fear she may have other longings, and may think that more extended aims and occupations may be her future destiny ; but she has assuredly never hinted at any such change, but rather that the present duty which Providence has prescribed, is to be with her old parents and her helpless brother. I am convinced, however, that if any change were presenting itself to add to the happiness and usefulness of so active and capable a nature, the parents would not stand in the way, but at any sacrifice to themselves they would willingly submit
to whatever change would seem best.

Education (pp. 128-29)

Alice had a fairly good school education, but rather upon the whole scanty, till she attended the Professors who were selected by the Association for Promoting the University Education of Women.

Alice began her education in Edinburgh under Miss
Kenward, a very deserving and competent governess for a young person, who came in daily to teach Walter and her till she was ten years of age. She then went to Miss Parkinson's school for between two and three years. For a part of the session of 187 1-2, and all the session 1872-3, she attended Mr Oliphant's English class in Charlotte Square, and was taught by himself, and therefore, I need not say, well taught.

The classes for the University Education of Women attended by her were the following:

1 st. Professor Masson's class on English Literature in 1874-5. 2nd. Professor Calderwood's class on Moral Philosophy, 1876-7.
3rd. Professor Fraser's class on Logic and Metaphysics, 1878-9.
4th. Professor Shield Nicholson's class on Political Economy, 1880-1.

In each of these classes Alice stood as first in merit, and received the highest prize, except in Professor Nicholson's class, when she and another young lady were judged equal in merit. She also passed the Local Examination in the summer of 1875. Her musical education was chiefly given by Miss Marianne Kay. She then received twice twelve lessons from Mr Lichtenstein, and she had six months' teaching of German by Miss Steinhoffer. She had also a session for French, taught by M. Havet. This may seem a limited time bestowed on these languages, but nevertheless she has a very ready use of both French and Italian. In German she has had less opportunity of practice.

Though a poor linguist, I proposed to initiate my daughter Alice and Miss Jennie Ainslie in the Italian language. I had never studied it systematically, but having spent the winter of 1832 in Italy, I had learned to read and speak in an indifferent sort, my reading being chiefly in the poets, and especially in the dramas of Metastasio ; so to work we went, and we passed an hour together, if I recollect aright, nearly every second evening. The result was, that when Mamma, Alice, and I, made a tour of two months
through Italy as far south as Sorento and Amain, in the spring of 1878, Alice felt no difficulty in conversing in the new language.

Life in Bordighera, Italy as Head Librarian of International Free Public Library (pp. 129-130)

Since we came to Bordighera in November of 1882, she has been one of the Episcopal Church choristers, and steadily attending all the practisings under the able direction of Mrs MacDonald.

She has also been librarian since the establishment of the International Free Library of Bordighera in 1886. When we came to Bordighera, there was the small nucleus of a church library under charge of the Rev. Mr Scarth and the curate, Mr Jameson. I proposed that we should have a public library for more general
use, which was agreed to ; but this remained under the direction of the clergymen, and was kept in Mr Jameson's house. It did not, however, make any very lively progress till about three years ago, viz., 1886, when some who took an interest in books proposed that it should be popularised and put under the management of a committee, so far as possible, of gentlemen of the different nationalities, English, Italian, French, and German, and called by the
above name of the International Free Library of Bordighera.

The committee was accordingly named, and it contained at least one German, Baron Klendgen ; and one Italian, Dr Agnetti ; the rest being English residents. Mr H. de Burgh Daly was named secretary and treasurer ; Alice, librarian ; and I was made president. From this popularising of the library in 1886, and under the energetic management of Alice, who attended on Wednesday and Saturday weekly, it has greatly thriven, so that we have now, in 1889, considerably above one thousand volumes. It has this year (1889) been removed from Mr Jameson's house, and established in the large and handsome museum built by Clarence Bicknel, Esq., and is open all the days in the week for his extensive and valuable collection of the Italian flora, and for other public purposes, and Mr Bicknel has kindly put the west end of his hall at the disposal of the library.

Alice has accordingly got the assistance of three other librarians. The library is supported solely by voluntary contributions, which are dropped into a locked box which stands on the table, and these,
upon the whole, have hitherto been ample, if not liberal.

Alice is the main selecter and purchaser of new books, and her aim is to make the selected books as interesting, various, and instructive as possible, and it seems to me that she has been wonderfully
successful in this.

Later Life

In 1906 she was apparently elected as join honorary treasurer of the Edinburgh Hospital and Dispensary for Women and Children at la Whitehouse Loan, Bruntsfield.

In 1907 she gave a series of lectures on Dante's Paradiso.

In 1909 she donated to the cause of the Earthquakes in Italy, Edinburgh and East of Scotland fund for the relief of the sufferers £2; at that time, she was living at 30 Hartington Place. She was connected to the Women's Missionary College, Edinburgh; she is mentioned along Rose Selfe who donated 10s.

In 1913 she spoke at the National Union of Women Workers on "The Call of Social Service upon Educated Women".

In 1915 she subscribed to the NUWSS Scottish Women;s Hospitals donating 3£ (additional donation) and 1£ in 1918.

Selected publications

(1904). The dread Inferno : notes for beginners in the study of Dante. Longmans, Green, and Co. London, New York.

Relation

Anglophone women writers